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Manual / Print & Export

Layouts and viewports (LAYOUT, MVIEW, PAGESETUP)

Set up the plot sheet with layouts, add viewports, switch between model and paper space, set the paper size and per-viewport layers.

What it does

A layout is the sheet of paper you plot. It contains viewports that look into model space.

Command Alias Syntax Meaning
LAYOUT LO LAYOUT <New|Set|Rename|Delete|List> [name] Creates, opens, renames, deletes or lists layouts.
MVIEW MV MVIEW [width] [height] Adds a viewport (in mm on the paper; the default is 40% of the paper).
PSPACE PS – Goes to paper space (the layout).
MSPACE MS – Returns to model space.
PAGESETUP PAGE PAGESETUP <A0–A4|LETTER|TABLOID|widthxheight> [Portrait|Landscape] [margin] The paper size of the layout (PAGESETUP ? lists the sizes).
VPLAYER – VPLAYER <Freeze|Thaw|List> <layer> [viewport] Hides a layer in one viewport only.
VPCLIP – VPCLIP [Delete] [viewport] Clips a viewport to the selected closed shape.

Where to find it

  • The Model / Layout1 / + tabs below the drawing area (+ = add a layout)
  • Ctrl+PgDown / Ctrl+PgUp switch between layout tabs

Steps

  1. Click the Layout1 tab. The prompt bar reads Layout preview: 297 x 210 mm - double-click a viewport to edit in Model.
  2. Set the paper: PAGESETUP A3 Landscape 10
  3. Add a viewport: MVIEW 150 100
  4. Double-click the viewport to edit the drawing in model space.
  5. Add a title block. See TITLEBLOCK.

A4 layout with a viewport
A4 layout with a viewport

A3 layout after PAGESETUP and MVIEW
A3 layout after PAGESETUP and MVIEW

Try it: A3 sheet for a motor starter panel

The door and the back plate of a small motor starter enclosure, side by side on one A3 sheet. Setting the paper first means the viewport Layout1 creates already fits it.

  1. Door: REC 0,0 → 400 Tab 500. Button holes C 90,300 radius 11.25, select it and ARRAYRECT 3 70 0; lamp hole C 310,300 radius 11.25; isolator REC 150,380 → 100 Tab 70 with C 200,415 radius 22.
  2. Back plate: REC 500,0 → 360 Tab 500, two DIN rails REC 530,362.5 → 300 Tab 35 and REC 530,202.5 → 300 Tab 35, and a box for each device (Q1, K1, F1 and a row of X1 terminals). Label both views with DT.
  3. While you are still in Model, type PAGESETUP A3 Landscape 10.
  4. Click the Layout1 tab. One viewport fills the A3 sheet and shows the door and the back plate together.
  5. Double-click inside the viewport to pan or zoom the drawing, then double-click outside it to go back to the sheet.

A3 Layout1 with one viewport showing the starter panel door and back plate
A3 Layout1 with one viewport showing the starter panel door and back plate

Challenge: Add a close-up of the back plate with MVIEW 120 80, then put the title block on with TITLEBLOCK.

See also